Giraffe

Barrens Giraffe - N. Barrens

Masai Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) - African Savannas

Longneck Grazer

Blizzard was pretty faithful here. They really just made the skin-covered horns on a real Giraffe into actual horns like an antelope would have. (note: I would say the horns are not antlers because the Barren's Giraffe keeps them all year and doesn't seasonally shed them.)

I'll admit, I did a little dance when I first rode into Sholazar Basin and saw these guys walking around. They are based more on a real life animal than most think. The Okapi (Okapia johnstoni - Congo, Africa) is the closes relative of the giraffe and weren't discovered until 1901! Flighty and easily spooked these guys are one of the coolest animals I've worked with as a zoo keeper. Their coat is like velvet to the touch and their tongues are almost as long as a giraffe's. More on Okapi here!

Not sure why they added these paler versions of he Longneck grazer, but they showed up with the Cata expansion. Their color variation has not been seen in Okapi, but could be Amelanistic or Leucistic (lacking color.)

Gazelle and Antelopes

Ok, take the Gazelle to the left over there and mix it with the small antelope below - Zebra Duiker (Cephalophus zebra) to get a Lonstrider Gazelle.

Sunchaser Gazelle

Blackbuck

Best approximation for in game "Gazelle" is based off a Blackbuck (antilope cervicapra - India) Specifically the male of the species (females are a light tan, as seen left.)

Gazelle

Cervids - Deer

Ok, I'm not exactly sure on this one, torn between Elk (alces alces) and Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus) but the basics are here. Males develop antlers, spar with other males over females and then the antlers fall off and regrow the next year. (this is one the things that sets them apart from the antelope above. )

Carabou (Reindeer) (Rangifer tarandus)

As far as I can tell, there are far fewer female deer, outside of lowbie areas in the game, than there should be for the male population out there. Ex: the only deer seen in, say, Borean Tundra or Ashelvale or Winterspring are either young (fawns) or adults with anlters (Males). Where are the ladies?

New MoP stags and deer

I really like the new skin on the Pandarian deer. The coat looks more like fur and the antlers have more definition. Like most of the new expansion - they just got more beautiful. They added in a middle size of "yearling" to the herd structures and has them moving in small family groups - an adult male, few yearlings and few calves. Those yearlings better get ready for a rude awakening. When the young males start to act like males those adults are going to get real unfriendly real fast.

Also, unless the females also have antlers (and they usually don't) I'm not seeing any ladies around to make these caves and yearlings. I mean, the stags are damn impressive, but where my does at?

Here they are! Found this pair wandering around in the Valley of the Four Winds. Thank you Blizzard!

Camels

There are only 2 species of Camels, the Dromedary, or one humped (Camelus dromedarius) from the Middle East and Africa and the Bactrian, or two-humped camel (Camelus bactrianus) from central Asia. Both have been domesticated. THeir closest relatives are the four South American camelids: the llama, alpaca, guanaco and vicuña - none of which are yet in game.

The camels in WoW can be found in Uldum, the "Egypt" themed zone introduced in Cataclysm. If you get exalted with the Ramkahen, you can get a camel as a mount.

Hunter pets?

While none of the above are currently hunter pets I think they would make faithful companions. Giraffe can kick in almost any direction and can kick hard enough to cleave in a lion's skull. I have also learned, while attempting to restrain some of these guys, that their hooves and horns can do a decent amount of damage.

Goat as hunter pet!

This is one of my favorite additions to hunter pets. A hoofed mammal, as a tameable pet. I can ride a goat and send one out to kick another creature's butt. And believe me, a goat or a deer can do a lot of damage. I've worked with numerous kinds of hoofstock, they are a lot stronger than you would think and can be a lot meaner than their grass-eating, brown-eyed faces may lead you to believe.I even managed to find the rare spawn tamable goat by following the footprints.

Mounts

Talbuk seem to be a type of antelope, based on the horns (they are definitely not antlers) and the face. Below are few pictures of real animals that could have added features to the Talbuk. One problem for identification - The talbuk are just so hairy; Nagrand must have some cool nights.